Tuesday, July 16, 2013

The many faces of Alanna McArdle: Joanna Gruesome/Ides

Joanna Gruesome are a band we've written about on here before, Cardiff-based youthful noiseniks who turn from languishing shoegaze to raging post-hardcore on the spin of a dime. That excitable explosiveness has been synthesised into a hopefully cohesive whole by Hookworms' MJ as producer, given the title Weird Sister and set for September 16th UK release via the Fortuna Pop!/Slumberland axis of ace noise-pop. Going on the stumbling, spinning like a top wild-eyed post-riot grrrl/Sonic Youth determination of Secret Surprise they're on their way.

And when she's not doing that singer Alanna McArdle has her own outlet Ides, a home for her minimalist guitar and haunted/bruised vocal telling of despair and feeling lost inside herself. Prisms is coming out as part of Art Is Hard's Postcard Club, which as the name suggests is a limited edition run of specially designed postcodes with unique download code.

Ides plays Brighton Hope on 9th August, Bournemouth 60 Million Postcards on 10th and a house show in Bristol on the 12th, all with King Of Cats. Both entities play together in London twice in the month, on the 6th at Buffalo Bar with that man King Of Cats and the mighty Gindrinker, and on 31st at the Victoria, Dalston for Art Is Hard's third birthday, also shared with Best Friends, The Black Tambourines, Gorgeous Bully, Playlounge, Nai Harvest, Birdskulls and RadStewart (yes, Joanna Gruesome and Radstewart are playing the same bill, leave it now). After that, they will progress to overcome their foes and conquer the world. Possibly.